


I'm in orbit around you

by neela



Series: SCOAFF!verse [3]
Category: Stargate Atlantis
Genre: Developing Relationship, F/M, Flirting, Missing Scene, Slow Dancing, Unresolved Sexual Tension
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-28
Updated: 2020-10-28
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:28:49
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,279
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27251968
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/neela/pseuds/neela
Summary: Missing scene from the epilogue of "Some Corner of a Foreign Field". Set between the January and February scenes.Sam and John share a Friday night dance.
Relationships: Samantha "Sam" Carter/John Sheppard
Series: SCOAFF!verse [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1989796
Kudos: 6





	I'm in orbit around you

**Author's Note:**

> Soundtrack: Tom Waits, "Closing Time" album. Especially "Little Trip to Heaven [On the Wings of Your Love]".

Lazy jazz sounded from the speakers in Little Chow, just loud enough to offset the subdued conversations and bouts of laughter that sounded all around the spacious room. Candles were burning on tables and on shelves along the walls, creating a subtle, intimate atmosphere for those who wanted something different than the usual Friday night events in the larger mess hall.

Staring across the table at Sam, John felt a fuzzy, warm feeling settle in the pit of his stomach that had nothing to do with the booze. She’d closed her eyes, her glass of Tikwee brew forgotten in her hand. A soft smile ghosted her lips as she listened to the jazzy tunes of Tom Waits coming from the speakers.

When she added a barely perceptible hum to the saxophone’s melody, John felt a strange electric ripple go through him, and the conversation of their friends drifted to the distant background. In their place were only Sam, her jazzy hum, and his memories. Memories of nights a year or so past with her sleeping in his arms, his sound system slipping out the same deep, golden melodies of his youth; of him listening to her slow breaths as she slept; of feeling grounded for the first time in a long time. Much like he’d felt in those early hours after last Christmas Day, and during many private moments since.

Twirling his glass in his hands, John smiled. Then, an idea and a moment’s crazed deliberation later, he rose to his feet.

“Where’re you going?” Rodney asked at once, the scientist’s cheeks and eyes flushed with inebriation. “Are you getting new drinks? If you are, I’d like a—”

“I’m not getting drinks, Rodney,” John said. On the other side of the table, Sam’s eyes fluttered open and she glanced up at him in surprise when he held his hand out to her. He met her eyes, ignoring everyone else. Another smile crossed his lips. “I’m asking the lady for a dance.”

Rodney stuttered, Ronon and Hailey grew quiet, Jennifer gave a _squee_ , and he was pretty sure that another dozen pairs of eyes around the room were paying attention too, but somehow none of that mattered. Only Sam’s reaction did, and it was immediate: a wide, flushed grin, followed by her warm hand in his and a gentle squeeze.

“A dance, huh?” Sam’s eyes glittered in both amusement and anticipation. John told himself to ignore the latter and focus on the former as he led her to the corner area reserved for a dancing floor. “You sure that’s within regulations?”

John glanced back at her and smirked. “You’re a Colonel, I’m a Colonel. Who else could you dance with without breaking the regs?”

“Literally half the population in this city?” was Sam’s immediate response, to which John made an exaggerated eye-roll to feign being affronted.

“Right, well, who _in this room_ would you _want_ to dance with - without worrying about the regs?”

“Pretty sure Rodney wouldn’t mind if I—”

She was cut off as John spun her into motion on the dance floor, then pulled her close and settled his right hand on the small of her back. If that came across as a little possessive, John didn’t mind. Neither did Sam by the looks of it. Warm candlelight reflected in her eyes and face, churning up the wattage of her brilliant smile to something that sent a gut-dropping prickling up and down his spine. His hold on her back tightened a little.

“Rodney’s got two left feet, y’know,” John murmured as he pulled her right hand into his left and started swaying them in time with the music. “Maybe even four. _Ronon_ , on the other hand…”

“Sounds like first-hand experience,” Sam teased before placing her left hand on his shoulder, her thumb brushing the edge between his shirt collar and his bare neck. It caused him to flush; an exhilarating sensation he’d felt only too often lately. “That how AR-1 always manage to ' _dance_ ' their way out of danger?”

“Secrets of the trade,” John said with a grin. He enjoyed these verbal spars. For one, watching Sam give as good as she got had always attracted him to her. A fact that was increasingly hard to ignore. “ _Some_ cards you keep close to your chest.”

At that, he pulled Sam even closer.

She flushed like a furnace, palm growing slick in his grip, and the sensation jarred his head back into the past _—skin upon skin—_ before he caught hold of himself. Blood pounding in his veins, John refocused on the rhythm of the music and keeping them in tune with it. It took a while, but they both eventually relaxed into the motions.

“This is nice,” Sam said quietly, tilting her head slightly so that John’s chin bumped into it. She had that soft smile again; the one from before. It resonated well with the depth of the music. “Thank you.”

John smiled too and – after a quick glance around – dared graze his lips into her hair just above her ear. “Don’t thank me yet. We might still end up in the stockades tomorrow.”

Sam chuckled and squeezed his hand. “Thought you said it’s not so bad for a Colonel to dance with another Colonel.”

“We-ell…” In one smooth maneuver, John sent Sam out for a gentle twirl and then tugged her back into his hold, his voice just above a hush. “We’re not just our ranks, are we?”

Their eyes met, his hand skirted a little lower on her back, and Sam’s cheeks flushed in the dim illumination.

Breath half stuck in his throat, John pulled her closer still, resting his cheek on hers, his eyes closing. She didn’t resist. Rather, she melted into him, and her scent – a mixture of soap, faint sweat, oil grease and _her_ – sparked a fresh influx of memories.

_—nose in her hair, smile on his lips—_

_—a ripple of laughter beneath his fingertips—_

_—revenge sworn, a struggle—_

_—more skin upon skin, flushed—_

John felt hot beneath his collar. If Sam couldn’t feel how hard his heart pounded…

The song began to dwindle, creating a natural end and a good excuse to break things off before they really _did_ wind up in the stockades. Except…John wasn’t sure he wanted that excuse anymore.

Maybe he was drunker than he’d thought.

Or maybe he wasn’t drunk enough.

Either way, John’s hushed “Sam…” felt desperate. As did his tense grip upon her.

“Soon,” Sam whispered; her breath hot on his ear. She sounded as breathless as he felt, and her fingertips dug slightly into his shoulder. “First thing Monday. I’ll talk to him. Expedite the revision process.”

John grimaced at this intruding reference and glanced around Little Chow to see if he could spot the person in question. It was too dark, though. Not that it really mattered anyhow. He knew Sam was right. This wasn’t the time or place. And they'd held on so far. What was a few days more?

“You better charm him with those pretty eyes of yours,” John mumbled as the song faded into silence. Hard as it was, he drew back a few steps to distance himself from Sam’s intoxicating presence.

“So long as you keep the engine running. I’ll want to make a quick getaway afterwards.” Despite the tension in her eyes, Sam’s lips managed another soft smile as they started walking back to their table. “And then I’ll want a second dance.”

Catching her drift, John relaxed a little and smirked, adding in a low voice, “No objections here. Just promise me you’ll leave that damn radio turned off.”

Sam blushed and chuckled. “Pinky swear.”

**Author's Note:**

> Just a little fluff and tension that I dug up from an old epilogue draft and revised a bit. Thought some people might enjoy it, especially if they've read SCOAFF. :)


End file.
